Losing two of the most important people in her life in a span of two weeks, Lu Xinyi felt that the world was turning against her. Her tears burst as she ran towards Sun Qiushan to see if she’d really died. There was this deep feeling of denial in Lu Xinyi’s heart, forcing her not to believe that Sun Qiushan had given up trying to live her life.

As she opened the doors, what welcomed her was the medical team tidying up the place with Sun Qiushan’s body laying in the operating table set up inside. Lu Xinyi forced her legs to move until she was standing beside her cousin’s body, tears flowing down her cheeks. Beside Sun Qiushan, a small beautiful baby boy was swaddled with a cloth.

The child resembled his mother’s facial features. The skin of the infant was a little red. He had scarce black hair on top of his head, and his cheeks looked soft and chubby. However, his size was a little smaller than any normal newborn baby she’d seen so far.

The medical team started to leave the room one by one. Some of them threw pitiful glances at Lu Xinyi and at the lifeless woman at the table before leaving. Maybe this was heaven’s way of saving both mother and child.

Sun Qiushan died from severe bleeding and from the post-traumatic injuries she’d received from the previous months, and the child… even if he survived childbirth, was more likely to die before reaching his second birthday.

Shen Yi stood at the doorway, thanking the medical staff as they left. He gave his wife time to mourn for her cousin. He knew that after this, there would be a huge change in Lu Xinyi. He could only hope that it wouldn’t affect their relationship as husband and wife.-.

“Qiushan…” Lu Xinyi touched the side of her cousin’s face with trembling fingers.

She never thought that she’d experience this kind of grief again. It all started when she lost her father, her world and her hero. The grief snuck up on her quietly and took her under its arms in an instant.

Every memory she shared with Sun Qiushan played like a song in her head, repeating itself for what seemed like forever. Lu Xinyi was at a loss, mostly because she had lost a big part of her life again. She couldn’t get that part back, and she wanted it so bad as if her life depended on it. However, it was all gone, vanished in thin air.

Why was fate so unfair to her? Wasn’t it enough that she’d lost her parents, and now, she just lost Meng Jiao and Sun Qiushan, too? Her heart wouldn’t be able to take it if she’d lose another loved one. Just the thought of losing Shen Yi or any of her friends brought distress to Lu Xinyi’s mind.

When her parents passed away, she couldn’t say it got better; but it did get easier. At first, Lu Xinyi thought grief was something bad that would take one ten feet under; but soon, she’d learned that it was just the price one had to pay for loving someone.

“Xinxin, what do you want to do now?” Shen Yi appeared and hugged her from behind. Lu Xinyi lifted her hand and held his arm.

“Are they still looking for her?” she asked. She needed to know the actions of her enemies before she would make a move.

“Xi Yunchuan’s people are still looking for her. Your bodyguards messed them up when they lit up his residence on fire while they were escaping with your cousin,” he replied. It seemed that until now, Xi Yunchuan had no idea who had taken Sun Qiushan from his place.

“Good, let them go in circles. I’ll never let him see Qiushan and his child ever again. Let him believe that he still has hope. I’ll make him regret his actions. I’ll make him regret laying a hand on Sun Qiushan! As for that dear cousin of mine…” Lu Xinyi’s eyes flashed dangerously. “She could only blame herself as I take my rightful place in the family.”

Though there were things in life she wanted to give up, Sun Qiushan was never on her list.

Lu Xinyi arranged Sun Qiushan and her nephew’s funeral in private. Their remains were to be buried the day after their death. She stood at the front of the funeral. Everyone’s heads were down. Maybe it was them showing respect, or maybe they were too afraid to look at what was coming. There were subtle changes in their mistress, and they weren’t sure if it was a good thing or not.

The coffin was pulled from the hearse by six strong men, all wearing suits. The silence dwelled as they entered the church. It wobbled as they carried it to the front and gently placed it down.

The coffin was white, and it was perfectly polished. It had a cushioned and silky lining. It seemed inviting. It was good to know that at least Sun Qiushan was resting in a comfortable place now. No more pain, no more fears.

Shen Yi held his wife’s shaky hand the whole time. He let her wipe her tears on his sleeve and rest her head on his shoulder.

—

“Auntie, Qiushan has escaped from Xi Yunchuan. What should we do now?” Sun Qiyan asked in a panic. Xi Yunchuan had given her a call about Sun Qiushan’s sudden disappearance and that his residence was burned down by someone.

They both knew it was a ploy to take Sun Qiushan, but as to who had the capability to do such a thing, the possibility was endless.

“Do you think it’s Lu Xinyi? It must’ve been her! Qiushan could have somehow found a way to reach Lu Xinyi!” Sun Qiyan continued.

Her sister was close to Lu Xinyi after all. She’d be the first on the list if ever Sun Qiushan asked for help, but Sun Qiyan wouldn’t allow her to ruin her plans! By making Qiushan Xi Yunchuan’s wife, she’d get an ally that could destroy Lu Xinyi entirely.

“Calm down, Qiyan.” Sun Mingai sighed and brought down her wine glass at the table. “Even if it’s Lu Xinyi, how would she able to hide Qiushan for too long? Sooner or later, we’ll find her. Xi Yunchuan wouldn’t let her go easily because she has his child.”

Hearing her aunt’s words, Sun Qiyan sat down and clasped her hands together. Sun Mingai was right. Lu Xinyi didn’t have the ability to go against the Sun and Xi families if she wanted to protect Qiushan.

“If Qiushan agrees to marry Xi Yunchuan, this would be an advantage to our family. Lu Xinyi has the Tang family on her side. If we can take the Xi family to our side, it would be easy to ruin her and Flair Apparel.”

The old woman nodded, pleased that their plans were going smoothly.

“As long as we have the child on our side, we must take advantage of the union. Qiyan, once they found Qiushan, you better make her marry Xi Yunchuan.”

“Yes, Auntie. I’ll make sure Qiushan will listen to me this time.”

Sun Qiyan smiled. Her success was almost on her hands, or so she thought.